EDC declares cash dividends worth P1.5B

Energy Development Corp., the country’s largest producer of geothermal energy, will pay P1.5 billion in dividends to its shareholders in April.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Thursday, EDC said its board of directors approved the declaration of cash dividend of 0.08 centavos per share in favor of preferred shareholders of record as of March 11, 2013.

The board also approved a cash dividend of 8 centavos per share on common shares in favor of common stockholders of record as of March 11, payable on or before April 8.

For this year alone, EDC is investing P22 billion in priority capital projects to further strengthen its foothold in both the domestic and international geothermal markets. This is slightly higher than the programmed P20-billion capital spending of the company last year.

“EDC’s total capital expenditure for 2013 is P22 billion. We are investing P15.5 billion in growth projects and P6.5 billion in existing operations,” EDC president and COO Richard B. Tantoco had said in an earlier interview with the Inquirer.

Tantoco said the company’s priority power projects for the year included the Nasulo geothermal project in the Negros Island; the 86-megawatt Burgos wind power project in Ilocos Norte; and various exploration projects overseas.

EDC is preparing for the transfer of the 49-MW Northern Negros geothermal power plant (NNGP) to Nasulo, Negros Oriental, from its original site in Negros Occidental. It is also set to start the construction of its proposed wind farm.